Need Help With Buying a Flashlight

Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum. I'm glad I found it bc I've been going crazy looking at different websites trying to pick out the "perfect" flashlight for my mom for christmas and, I got lost. I'm confused w/ the difference btwn led flashlights and lumens. I know they measure light in lumens, but, why don't they say how many lumens an led flashlight produces?

My mom wants a high powered flashlight so I promised I'd find her a good one for christmas. I want to spend $30.00 or less on one. I've been looking at the Dorcy 180 lumen flashlight. It looks well made but, it has a narrow beam and i know my mom would like one w/ a wider beam.

I have a flashlight that my mom sorta likes but, she wishes it was a bit brighter. I own a 51 led 3 mode flashlight that i bought on ebay for $13.00 -- it's a great flashlight but, i've looked everywhere and it doesn't say how many lumens it produces.

I've looked up flashlights that have 1000-2000 lumens but, are they really that much brighter then a flashlight that has 180 lumens?

What's the best/brightest flashlight I can get for under $30.00? Can you tell me the difference in brightness btwn 100-2000 lumens? Is it worth it to get a flashlight w/ more lumens or, is one w/ fewer lumens just as good? The flashlight I bought for myself has a fairly wide beam, which i love, however, on ebay, it didn't say that it had a wide beam. How can I tell if the flashlight has a wide beam unless it says it on the package? I'm also looking for a white light as my mom doesn't like the "blue" look/beam of some flashlights.

I usually buy my items from ebay or amazon in hopes of getting the items cheaper but, I just am so turned around when it comes to all these different flashlights. I just don't know what to do or what to choose. I'd appreciate any type of help/feedback u can give me!!

Im no expert, but from what I gather, the cheaper lights don't have lumen ratings.

Here's a thread on lumens.

Those are tough requirements, $30.00 for lots of lumens. I would up my budget to $45.00 and get her a Preon 2 at 160 lumens. I bought my mother one and she loves it. It is small enough to keep in her purse, uses AAA batteries and comes in blue, red, yellow or black.


IMO, the best lumens for the buck is the Solarforce L2T. At about $33.00 you get 820 lumens. I think the lumen rating is a bit exagerated, but not too far off. The problem with this light is the Li-on rechargeable battery it uses. I definitely would not recommend for your mom.

Hopefully this gives you a little study material.

Lumens is the measure of total output. What your mom is probably interested is Lux, which is the measure of how much light you can put in a particular place.

For instance, a 100w light bulb puts out roughly 1000 lumens, but that output is spread evenly in every direction. A well focused 10 Lumen light will be able to illuminate a particular spot brighter than the 100w bulb even though it has 1% the total output.

Your 51-LED light (what we generally call a "shower-head" light) probably has plenty of lumens, but because the light isn't focused, it doesn't appear very bright to your mother. Just about any power LED based light will do better. The suggestion of the Preon 2 is excellent. Its about the size of a pen, but can put out 4 times more light than the traditional 4D Maglite if you really need it.

--flatline

I would say it depends on how your mom plans on carrying the light. If she's carrying it in her purse all the time, I'd suggest a larger light, like a Quark AA tactical (you can set the 2 main modes she'd use most; high and medium or low). Much easier than teaching her the way to change the modes.

Another light that would be worth checking out is the Fenix E21, if she doesn't mind a longer light. It has 2 modes (call it 150 and 50). It's $31 for the light, and another $10ish for Eneloops (low self discharge AA NiMH's. Perfect batteries if she's not planning to use the light much). If she uses it maybe once in a blue moon, look at the Energizer lithium AA's. Those will be able to stay in the light for like 10 years, without any chance of blowing up like a CR123 light could (if you mistreat the batteries).

Either way, if its a light she rarely uses, look into either the Preon's or the Quark line from 4Sevens. I would suggest the Quark AA Tactical, though. I have yet to have an issue with mine. My opinion is lopsided, though, because I haven't used a Preon myself yet, so I'm going off my experience with the AA.

Moving this to LED Flashlights...

You would see a HUGE difference from 100 to 3000 lumens output. The 51 5mm led flashlight of yours probably produces around 100 out the front lumens so you would see a HUGE difference. The cheapest light in the 2500-3000 lumen range that i know of is the DRY 3XML with the 5A direct driver off IMR cells. It costs around 75 dollars.